Lewis’s eyes remained focused intently on Josie’s lips. They shined with strawberry lipgloss. He could taste it in his own mouth, which was still hanging slightly open from the kiss when Mr. Mays called up the stairs for Lewis to come down. He felt as if he was seeing Josie clearly for the first time.

Josie bit her lip. Her eyes were piercing. She had always looked at him as if seeing something deeper, but it wasn’t until now that Lewis felt he truly understood. He kept Mr. Mays waiting a moment longer as he studied Josie’s face. Her eyes were still tinged with specks of sorrow. They seemed to be begging him to remember the relationship she’d had with the different version of himself.

A future me.

Although he did not have the memories she was drawing from, he could feel the electricity between them; the possibility of greatness was very much present. He wanted to know everything—where it all would lead.

Excitement, longing, acceptance, and a healthy dose of fear all jumbled together inside of him in a confusing mess. Ultimately, as he searched his feelings, the growing intimacy between them just felt right.

Josie pulled away, leaning back against the wall. She motioned towards the door with her head. “Go on,” she said, a breathless rasp escaping with her words.

Lewis nodded. He wished he could stare at her forever.

It took considerable effort to turn away, but he knew he was being rude by not answering Mr. Mays. He was thankful when Josie followed him downstairs.

Mr. Mays was holding a duffle bag in his arms. “This is for you,” he said. “It’s full of supplies—everything you’ll need, at least for the time being.” He placed the bag on the ground and unzipped it.

Inside was a bag of beef jerky, a jar of peanut butter, and a loaf of bread along with a bunch of bottles of water and a flashlight. Additionally, Mr. Mays handed Lewis a cheap toothbrush and tube of toothpaste, plus a stick of deodorant. Lewis wasn’t sure if Mr. Mays was simply being nice or trying to tell him that he smelled bad, but either way the supplies were greatly appreciated.

Lewis knew he was to be living in the abandoned creepy house while he completed the journal’s tasks. Until now he’d neglected to put a single thought into exactly what supplies he’d need to live on his own in the empty house.

The unexpected assistance from Mr. Mays was just another layer of complexity falling into place—every moment of his life choreographed by Mr. Gray and alternate versions of himself. And now a future version as well…. He was too close to see the full picture. At this point he merely accepted the guiding hand and didn’t bother asking questions.

Josie ran back upstairs. She soon returned with a pink sleeping bag and one of the pillows from her bed. She handed them over to Lewis after he picked up the duffel bag.

Lewis held the pillow to his chest. He could smell her on it. The usual earthiness of her hair was brightened by a floral fabric softener. It was like sunshine in a meadow. He wished he could steal another sweet kiss.

“I’ll stop by later tonight to keep you company,” said Josie.

Excited butterflies danced in Lewis’s belly. “Cool,” he said through a wide grin, “see you later!”

With so much at stake, Lewis knew girls should have been the last thing on his mind, but there was something different about Josie. She was like him—Chosen. Of all the people fate could have paired him with, he was glad it was Josie.

The walk to the creepy house went by quickly as Lewis replayed the kiss over and over again in his head. He couldn’t wait for Josie to visit him later. He lowered the duffle bag and bedding in through the broken window before climbing up. Once inside he carried everything upstairs to the master bedroom, unrolled the sleeping bag, and sat down. He turned to the journal for more instructions.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“Entry #4: Wait at home base until you see Prime pass by outside with Andrew, Jeremy, Kiera, and Kenzie on their way to vandalize Josie’s house. After they pass, leave immediately for our house. Sneak in. Read on when you get there.”

He had hours to kill before dark. Prime would be starting his homework right about now. He had to wait for him to go to the party and then head out in Andrew’s car. Lewis flopped back on the sleeping bag and shut his eyes. The floor was hard under his back, but he was exhausted from his travels.

Thoughts of Josie consumed him. She really likes me! It was somehow a harder concept to wrap his brain around than all the craziness with Mr. Gray. He turned onto his side and inhaled deeply through his nose, breathing Josie’s essence in from the pillow. He wanted to laugh at how stupid he’d been for so long, pining after Kenzie.

He began to drift off to sleep. It felt like only a moment had passed when he opened his eyes again, but it was already dark outside. Lewis sat up with a start.

Did I miss my cue?

He hopped to his feet and ran over to the window. Mr. Gray was yet to give him back his phone so Lewis didn’t have a clock to check the time. Within moments of reaching the window he spotted a car coming down the street. Lewis rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

It couldn’t be….

The timing was impeccable. Andrew was in the driver’s seat. Inside the car, Kiera screamed. Andrew slammed on the breaks, making the car screech to a halt in front of the house. Kiera pointed up at Lewis’s window.

He ducked down before anyone else spotted him. They would be on their way to Josie’s again in a second. Lewis followed the journal’s instructions, making his way out of the house and over towards his family’s home. Andrew’s car was gone by the time Lewis hopped out the window.

Feeling energized by his nap, Lewis ran all the way home. He snuck in through the side slider door and immediately consulted the journal.

“This next part isn’t going to be fun… you need to sneak back into our bedroom and set the fire that burns the room. Light the wastebasket on fire and leave it by the drapes. That killed Jenny. Try mixing sulfuric acid, sodium chlorate and sugar in the wastebasket and place by the drapes. Don’t use the waste basket, pour on space heater, place sugar cubes underneath, this should produce a slower start. That worked.” There were at least four separate notes. It had taken past Lewis’s several attempts to get the fire right without killing his family.

An anxious knot immediately formed in his gut. He had always known he was at least partially at fault for the fire by leaving his chemistry set out, but now he knew it wasn’t neglect at all that caused the flames. As much as he didn’t want to start the fire, burning his room was a small price to pay for a chance at saving humanity.

His parents were already in bed. He went straight to the coffee station and grabbed the jar of sugar cubes. From the bottom of the stairs he could hear music playing in Jenny’s room. He stepped gingerly up the stairs, avoiding a couple of spots that he knew to be creaky. He silently opened his bedroom door and slipped inside.

He went to the broken window and poured the sugar cubes on the floor underneath the space heater. The chemistry kit was sitting out right where he’d left it. He searched through the various chemical solutions in vials and found the two he needed. He poured the chemicals all over the space heater. Little drips fell down on the sugar and started bubbling. It would eventually ignite and start the drapes on fire.

He turned back to the journal. “Next you need to disable the smoke detectors in our room and at the top of the stairs.”

The one in his room was easy. He stood on the bed and popped open the panel that held the batteries. The unit beeped loudly as he removed them, but then the little green light went out. The smoke detector in the hallway made him more nervous. He needed something to stand on. His desk chair seemed like his best bet.

As quietly as he could, he dragged his desk chair out into the hallway and placed it under the smoke detector. He was glad that Jenny was still playing music—it would mask the beep when he removed the batteries—but he was also worried she might come out and catch him.

He stepped up onto the chair, moving slowly so that it wouldn’t rotate beneath him. A crescendo in Jenny’s music provided the perfect cover for the dying beep of the detector. He replaced the plastic panel and then stepped down carefully. He picked up the chair and shifted it back through his doorway just as a click sounded behind him.

He pushed the chair farther in with his foot as he spun around. Jenny’s door was still shut, but the door to his parents’ room was wide open.